New Limit on semesters you may receive a pell grant
In December 2011, President Obama signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2012 (Public Law 112-74). This law has significantly impacted the Pell Grant Program. Beginning in Fall 2012, students are now limited to 12 semesters (or 600%) of Pell Grant eligibility during their lifetime. This change affects all students regardless of when or where they received their first Pell Grant. Students that are currently receiving the Pell Grant in the academic year 2011-2012 and have already used 600% of their Pell Grant eligibility will no longer be eligible to receive a Pell Grant starting Fall 2012.
How Do I Know If This Affects Me?
If you have attended college for 4 years or longer, receiving the Pell Grant each year, you are likely to exhaust or have already exhausted your lifetime limit of 12 semesters of Pell Grant eligibility during your academic career.
If you have attended college and received the Pell Grant for 3 years or less you will likely not surpass the lifetime limit during the current school year.
Whether you have used all of your Pell Grant eligibility or only half, please be conscious about the lifetime limit of the Pell Grant when changing majors and/or scheduling classes.
Can I See My Lifetime Pell Grant Used?
You may view your percentage of Pell Grant used by logging into NSLDS.ed.gov. Your ‘Lifetime Eligibility Used’ percentage will be displayed in the ‘Grants’ section.
How Is The Percentage Used Calculated?
For more information on how lifetime eligibility is calculated, visit the Department of Education's Pell Lifetime Eligibility website.
I Have Questions About This, Who Do I Call?
If you are not an SUU student:
If you are not a student of Southern Utah University, you should contact your school's financial aid office. You can also contact the Department of Education directly at 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243).
If you are an SUU student:
SUU students may call our office at (435) 586-7735 and ask to speak with their Financial Aid Counselor. Our counselors are available to discuss the change in the lifetime Pell Grant eligibility with you.
- If your last name begins with A-J, your Financial Aid Counselor is Alene Laursen. You can email her at laursen@suu.edu or call 435.865.8162.
- If your last name begins with K-O, your Financial Aid Counselor is Malinda Rhodes. You can email her at rhodes@suu.edu or call 435.865.8714.
- If your last name begins with P-S, your Financial Aid Counselor is Nellie Lee. You can email her at nellielee@suu.edu or call 435.586.7760.
- If your last name begins with T-Z, your Financial Aid Counselor is Heather Shober. You can email her at heathershober@suu.edu or call 435.586.1930.